Five Inexpensive Ways to Dress Up Cheap Wedding Favors

While doing some Pinteresting research for my upcoming wedding, I came across a hilarious meme that really resonated with me. It said something along the lines of, “I’m planning two weddings. The one I found on Pinterest, and the one I can afford.” If you’ve ever used Pinterest and/or planned a wedding, you’ll know how true that statement really is.

Like most brides, my biggest wedding-related challenge is staying on budget. Favors are just one area where I really want to save money – so I’m compromising a bit on quality and going cheap. But here’s some good news for other budget-loving brides: Cheap favors don’t have to look cheap! Here are some ways to take your beer-budget favors to a champagne-budget level.

Fabric Bags

Plastic and paper bags often look cheap, but fabric bags are a classy, simple way to give away small favors. Oriental Trading Company has tons of low-cost options. These bejeweled drawstring bags are great for holding small chocolates and candies, and since they’re already dressed up, you wouldn’t need to do anything more than fill the bag. At $10.50 per dozen, they’re an inexpensive way to make your cheap candies look like a million bucks. If you’re looking to spend even less money, you can try these pre-cut tulle circles. At just $3 for 25 pieces, these 10’’ circles can be turned into a classy bag with just a little bit of your favorite ribbon – and they come in many different colors!

DIY Favor Boxes

Truthfully, this post just wouldn’t be complete unless I mentioned Martha Stewart, the queen of all things DIY. Martha’s perfect vellum favor boxes are super simple: Find two colors of vellum you like and cut one circle from each. Secure your vellum circles to a plain box with double-sided tape, and complete the package with metallic string or ribbon. These are great because they can be made to fit any color scheme, and will look wonderful filled with chocolates, mints or other small candies. You can find plain favor boxes here for about $1.50 per dozen; they come in every color of the rainbow and then some!

Looking for more DIY ways to dress up plain boxes? See all 32 tutorials for cute boxed wedding favors at Martha Stewart Weddings.

Custom Labels

Whether you box it, bag it or tie it, you can jazz up just about any packaging with a custom sticker or label. You can customize monogram stickers at Zazzle for about $5 per sheet of 20 stickers (the price goes down the more stickers you order). Shutterfly.com also offers customizable stickers – and you can even add a picture. Shutterfly’s stickers typically cost $6.99 for a set of 24. Get more mileage out of those engagement photos with custom photo stickers!

A See-Through Box

If you’re making homemade cookies or giving away beautifully-wrapped candies, there’s no need to hide them in a cardboard box. You can grab 3x3x3’’ clear plastic boxes on Amazon for about $16 per set of 50. Let your favors shine; just finish the look with a simple ribbon or one of your monogram stickers!

Chinese Takeout Boxes

If you’re handing out favors at the very end of the night, takeout boxes are an adorable way to send home goodies with guests. Save-On-Crafts.com has takeout boxes in every style from cardboard to foil to damask. They make a great base for your DIY favor project; you can bedazzle them, cover them in glitter, tie them with ribbons, or even decorate them with markers!

What kinds of wedding favors are you giving away? How did you make inexpensive favors seem more special? Share with us in the comments below!

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